Field
The present disclosure relates generally to computing systems, and more specifically to remotely controlling operation of subsystems on a computing device.
Background
With the advent of multiple processors or multiple cores on a single chip (also known as SoCs), processing tasks have been distributed to various processors or cores that specialize in a given function to provide enhanced performance. For instance, some smartphones now comprise a core for OS activities including audio decoding, a core for video decoding, a core for rendering and composing graphical frames, a core for composing frames, another core for handling WiFi data, and yet another core for telephony.
When processors such as those listed above are operating on a power constrained device (e.g., a device utilizing battery power), it is important for the processors to keep power consumption low while providing the performance benefits associated with multiple processors. Mobile communication devices including devices such as smartphones, tablet computers, gaming devices, and laptop computers are now ubiquitous. A common and ongoing issue with these types of devices is power management. Although advances continue to be made in the areas of battery technology and hardware efficiency, current mobile device power management techniques are not adequate to meet user expectations and will almost certainly not be satisfactory in the future.
The application processor (or app processor) in many mobile wireless communication devices (or user equipment (UE)) may be suspended to conserve power. App processors are also starting to see multiple cores, thus allowing one or more cores to be idled or put into an offline state to save power. Moreover, a typical communication device has several hardware components and corresponding drivers that may be suspended during idle periods. These power saving techniques save power at the expense of processing power, an acceptable tradeoff when the app processor or other hardware components are not being fully utilized anyway. Waking-up a system (or subsystem) from power saving standby mode, typically involved pressing a physical button on the device that triggers the wake up sequence for subsystem(s).